Gaur

Share Top Five January 26, 2019

The gaur, also called the Indian bison, is the largest extant bovine. This species is native to South and Southeast Asia. It has been listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List since 1986. Population decline in parts of its range is likely to be more than 70% during the last three generations. However, population trends are stable in well-protected areas, and are rebuilding in a few areas which previously had been neglected.The gaur is the tallest of wild cattle species,More info:wiki

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#10 Animal of the Week: Gaur,More info:toehold

The tallest of all the wild cattle species and the largest extant bovine, the gaur is native to Southeast Asia and South Asia. This massive and strong mammal, with its curved horns, glossy dark brown skin and white or tan lower legs – as though they’re wearing stockings – has been listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List.

Mostly confined to moist deciduous forests, evergreen and semi-evergreen forests, this mammal is diurnal. The herds are led by an adult female, usually an old one – the matriarch. It grazes on a vast variety of plants, preferring upper portions like leaf blades, seeds and stems. It is threatened by poaching for commercial trade and sometimes for meat consumption as well. However, even as a strong bovine, the gaur is not aggressive in its behaviour, except when it feels threatened.

Besides humans, this cattle isn’t really troubled by many predators as their formidable size and strength are feared; only tigers and crocodiles are known to have killed a full-grown healthy adult gaur. Leopards and packs of dholes occasionally attack this herbivore, but the unhealthy ones and unguarded calves that would have strayed away from their herds.

#9 Gaur,More info:creatures-of-the-world.wikia

#8 Gaur,More info: elelur

This Asiatic bovine is a giant – the largest of all the species of wild cattle. This species lives from Nepal and India to South-east Asia, including the Malay peninsula, inhabiting forested hills.

Once common in hilly, forested areas throughout their range, gaur now only occur in scattered herds. Gaur are legally protected, but this is hard to enforce except in reserves, and the population is still threatened.

The gaur is a strong, heavily built animal, with a massive head, thick horns and a prominent muscular ridge on its shoulders. Females are smaller than males and have shorter, lighter horns. Gaur range in colour from reddish to dark brown or almost black, with white hair on the lower half of the legs. In small herds, they take shelter in the shade and seclusion of forest during the day and at night, but they venture out into the open to feed in the morning and late afternoon, when they graze and also sometimes browse on the leaves and bark of available trees.

When it comes to determining leadership of a herd, male gaurs rarely fight. Instead, the larger male is simply recognized as the dominant individual. Other adult males stay outside the herd, living on their own. These animals’ great bulk also means that they can simply smash their way through the rainforest to escape danger if threatened. In areas where they have been hunted by people, gaurs have become nocturnal in their habits, making them harder to observe.